Growing up in a household with an Italian mother and a hippie father, corporal punishment wasn’t the go to when it came to discipline in our house. As with most Italian / Catholic households GUILT was the driving force behind most punishments. Example – I remember bringing home some Playboys that I had found. Mixed in with the “Why did you do this?” was the ever present “What would Jesus think?” Sigh.

Side Story – I remember that incident and my father responding to my mother, saying that Jesus might have been down with the Playboys. I mean, he hung with prostitutes and his dad created all life. I would assume he’s into the aesthetics of a nude female. I appreciate the effort dad.

In high school, my friends and I would hang out at my Grandma’s house that she lived in on a part-time basis. Looking back, it was nice of my folks to allow this. Well, one night, we got some beers and ended up having some friends over after the basketball game. Before we broke curfew, we placed the empties on the stairs going down to the basement. My plan was to come back the following day and get them. Of course my dad beat me there the next day and found them. He had me get my buddies together and he dropped the “I’m not as mad as I am disappointed in you guys….”

And that’s how I feel about some of you Sox fans. Last year, our Sox weren’t hitting the shit outta the ball like they are now. And who did some of yous blame? Yep, this guy…

Yep, poor Todd Steverson was blamed for our offensive woes. Sometimes Ricky would take some lumps too (mostly for bunting), but basically Todd was the guy that “wasn’t doing his job” and “needed to be fired”. Nevermind that Tim Anderson was just straight fire in 2019 (and he gave huge props to Todd), that was just Tim being Tim. At the end of 2019 Todd was let go and replaced a week later by Frank Menechino who had done wonders in Charlotte. He did alot of work with Luis Robert and Nick Madrigal. It seemed like an excellent upgrade.

Now it wasn’t just the offense that was kinda trashy last year. Nope, our pitching had it’s woes too. So it was suggested that this guy wasn’t doing his job either….

Yep. The genius behind the 2005 pitching. The guy who had an ace staff of Chris Sale and Jose Quintana, but lack of offensive production really took it’s toll. It was again floated that “maybe the game has passed him by” or “his luck had run out”. Even when Lucas Giolito had an outstanding comeback in 2019, his high school coach caught the credit. It was suggested that pitchers had to go outside the system to succeed. We needed a replacement and we needed it now!

But then 2020 happened and look at us now! The pitching, especially the bullpen, has been lights out. Our offensive production is off the fucking charts! It’s been an amazing turnaround from last season and we’re all loving it! I’ve long considered White Sox fans to be honest and incredibly fair. So I’ve been sitting back just waiting for the accolades to come pouring in for Coop and Frank. BUT (as my dad said)…”I’m disappointed in you…”

I said it last year and I’m sad I have to say it this year. They either matter, or they don’t. You can’t blame the woes on the staff, but only credit the player when they do good. It’s unfair and unbecoming. The lack of tweets giving props to Frank for this offense is very telling. Luis Robert is amazing, but fucking A bro, we’d be calling for Frank’s head if he was sucking it up at the plate. A geriatric Jose Abreu hit 5 homers in 2 games. I mean, if that doesn’t call for a “Great Job Frank!”I don’t know what does. Hell, you can even go further, these guys are just crushing the ball, with almost all their runs coming by homers. Even Danny Mendick is crushing. But not a peep from the peanut gallery. Not even a little.

Same for Coop. We loved him in #DancingForDubs but we can’t give him credit for all those strikeouts from our “girl next door” bullpen? I think that’s bullshit. Our ace just tossed a no-no and Coop barely got a “good game” from Sox Twitter. Which I am sure he’d appreciate.

So guys, just be consistent, that’s all I’m asking. I know in 2020 it’s a tough ask, and I apologize for making the request. But we need to continue the trend of being tough but fair.

-MSS